The invention relates to road rollers used primarily for compaction of asphalt surfacing materials on roads. More particularly, the invention relates to an apparatus providing an ergonomic workplace for the operator in the cabin of the road roller and an unobstructed view of the rollers of the road roller and especially of the lateral edges of the rollers. This view is of major importance when positioning the road roller on the surface to be compacted. Compaction of road surfacing materials is achieved by repeated passages back and forth over a stretch whose width is equal to or greater than the width of the roller of the road roller. It is therefore essential for the operator to have full control over the exact lateral position of the roller edges, especially in work next to curbs or other raised surface structures. This requires that the operator be able to position his head in the vertical plane defined by the lateral edges of the roller during travel of road roller in the forward or rearward direction.
Prior art road rollers with a cabin do not allow the operator to conveniently obtain the desired view of the edges of the rollers. This is because the cabin is not wider than the rollers so road surfaces can be compacted right next to vertical obstacles, such as curbstones or poles. The operator therefore has to lean out through one of the openable side cabin windows and is then no longer protected against external conditions (exhaust fumes, precipitation, wind, noise, et cetera) against which the cabin is intended to provide protection. The operator is also forced to assume a highly strenuous and uncomfortable body position. Despite these disadvantages, the operator still does not have a clear line of sight especially along the edge of the forward roller because the arms of the yoke of the forward and/or rearward roller partially blocks the operator's view.